Blizzard, Marquette
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Marquette forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.820, -89.399 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 29, 1996
A rare, widespread ground blizzard tormented Southcentral and Southeast Wisconsin with the worst whiteout conditions ever experienced by some residents and travlers. " The whiteout conditions occurred primarily in open, exposed areas.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 20 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 20
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS MKX wrote it up.
A rare, widespread ground blizzard tormented Southcentral and Southeast Wisconsin with the worst whiteout conditions ever experienced by some residents and travlers. Some drivers described it as "driving into a ball of cotton." The whiteout conditions occurred primarily in open, exposed areas. A fresh snowcover of 1 to 3 inches on top of an older cover of 6 to 20 inches was easily blown around by winds frequently gusting over 35 mph. Otherwise, bright sunshine was the rule in villages and urban areas were visibilities never went below 1.5 miles. The peak wind gusts was 54 mph in Waukesha (Waukesha county), while everyone else had gusts into the 40 to 49 mph range. There was an unofficial gust to 60 mph (52 knots) on an exposed ridge near Pewaukee (Waukesha county).Several hundred vehicle accidents resulted, with the worst one being two 14-vehicle accidents along the same stretch of I-94 in Racine county. At least 33 people were briefly hospitalized because of the accidents (indirectly related to ground blizzard). Portions of the Interstates and other highways were closed from time to time. Many schools delayed their opening times or canceled classes. Service stations and police/sheriff dispatchers were overwhelmed.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
20 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.
Blizzard, Green Lake
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Green Lake forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.800, -89.045 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Fond du Lac
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Fond du Lac forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.754, -88.488 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Sheboygan
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Sheboygan forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.756, -87.800 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Sauk
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Sauk forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.427, -89.948 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Columbia
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Columbia forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.467, -89.334 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Dodge
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Dodge forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.416, -88.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Washington
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Washington forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.369, -88.231 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Ozaukee
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Ozaukee forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.403, -87.891 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Iowa
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Iowa forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.001, -90.135 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Dane
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Dane forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.067, -89.418 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Jefferson
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Jefferson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.021, -88.776 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Milwaukee
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Milwaukee forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.022, -87.929 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Lafayette
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Lafayette forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.661, -90.132 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Green
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Green forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.680, -89.602 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Rock
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Rock forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.671, -89.072 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Walworth
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Walworth forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.669, -88.542 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Racine
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Racine forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.730, -87.812 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Kenosha
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Kenosha forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 42.573, -87.840 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Waukesha
- When
- January 29, 5:00 AM CST to 4:00 PM CST
- Where
- Waukesha forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.018, -88.304 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Blizzard
- Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Cold in North Dakota, January 29, 1996
- Blizzard in Michigan, January 29 to 31, 1996
- Cold in South Dakota, January 29 to 31, 1996
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 29, 1996
- Cold in Iowa, January 29 to 31, 1996
- Cold in Wisconsin, January 29 to 31, 1996
- Cold in Minnesota, January 29 to 31, 1996
- Cold in Wyoming, January 29 to 31, 1996
- Blizzard in Wisconsin, January 29, 1996
- High Wind in Ohio, January 29, 1996
- Winter Storm in Michigan, January 29 to 30, 1996
- Blizzard in Minnesota, January 29, 1996
More
Every storm in Wisconsin in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in Wisconsin, January 1996
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5538334, 5538335, 5538336, 5538337, 5538338, 5538339, 5538340, 5538341, 5538342, 5538343, 5538344, 5538345, 5538346, 5538347, 5538348, 5538349, 5538350, 5538351, 5538352, 5538353.